My mom found this recipe in the newspaper and it quickly became her default method of making stuffing, which is a bit surprising after decades of stuffing a turkey in the traditional way. Why would you make stuffing outside a turkey?

• You can double it if you need to. When you are making a turkey dinner for fewer people, the turkey itself often gets smaller but the demand for stuffing doesn’t seem to. Now you’re not limited by the bird itself.
• It can be made the day before, placed in a casserole dish and microwaved (duh) a few minutes before dinner.
• It’s accidentally vegetarian; and
• Flavour wise, it’s just as good as “real” stuffing (in fact, my family prefers it).

These measurements are mom’s “doubling” amounts that she wrote in the margin of the newspaper clipping. I usually double the recipe below to make enough stuffing to fill a large Dutch oven.

Ingredients:

• 2/3 cup butter or margarine
• 1 cup finely chopped onion
• 1 cup chopped celery
• 8 cups bread cubes (basically a loaf of white bread)
• 1 tsp salt
• 2 tsp sage
• ¼ tsp pepper (or to taste)
• 1/2 cup chicken broth / bouillon (I use McCormick cubes)

Directions:

1. Add all ingredients except the bread to a casserole dish.
2. Microwave (covered) until vegetables are tender (I use med-high setting and a few 3-4 min intervals, checking / stirring in between.
3. Tear bread into bite-sized cubes, add to a large mixing bowl (I fill a 2cup measuring cup four times).
4. When onions/celery are tender, pour the contents of the casserole dish over the bread and mix thoroughly with a spatula.
5. Transfer finished stuffing back to the casserole dish and cover.

You can refrigerate overnight or serve immediately. In either case, 5 mins on high in the microwave and it’s ready to serve.